If you’re of the opinion that N.C. State’s upset of top-ranked Duke on Saturday was validation of its selection as the ACC’s preseason favorite and a signal that the Wolfpack’s long-suffering men basketball program had finally gotten over the proverbial hump, you’re only half right.

The memorable 84-76 victory did prove that coach Mark Gottfried’s veteran team is capable of playing with and beating anyone in the country.

But when it comes to that hump – the one that has often looked as high and intimidating as the mountains that line the western border of our great state – let’s just say the book is still out on that one.

For this Wolfpack team to truly differentiate itself from its predecessors during the 2˝ decades since the school’s last ACC championship, it needs to put the celebration of Saturday’s triumph behind it and continue winning, starting with Wednesday’s game at Maryland.

“We beat a great team and a great coach, but we can’t stop here,” star forward C.J. Leslie said after being lifted onto the shoulders of fans who stormed the court at the final buzzer. “We’re going to come back out and give it our all.”

It’s a task that, in a lot of ways, might be even more difficult than the one State just accomplished against the rival Blue Devils.

The distractions continued into Tuesday morning when Leslie got up early to appear on NBC’s Today Show along with Will Privette – the wheelchair-bound student he saved from being trampled during the postgame crush of humanity.

Leslie and his teammates will also be fighting history at the Comcast Center.

The Wolfpack has lost 18 of its last 20 trips to Maryland, including the last four. The Terrapins won’t be any pushover this year either, at 13-3 overall despite a two-game ACC losing streak.

An even more ominous sign is the fact that, since the end of the Jim Valvano era in 1991, State is only 3-12 in games immediately following a regular-season win against Duke or North Carolina.

There’s no faster way to dilute the significance of a major victory than turning right around and losing to a lesser opponent.

Just ask former State football coach Tom O’Brien.

He and his team were sitting on top of the world (and the ACC’s Atlantic Division standings) after upsetting No. 3 Florida State in October. But after losses to UNC and bottom-feeding Virginia, he suddenly found himself out of a job.

Though Gottfried’s status as Wolfpack coach clearly isn’t in doubt, the football team’s experience should serve as a cautionary tale of how quickly a season can turn if the players allow their focus to wander from the task at hand.

Page 2 of 2 - It’s a danger State’s core group of Leslie, Lorenzo Brown and seniors Richard Howell and Scott Wood have the potential to avoid. Not necessarily because of the talent they possess, which is formidable, but because of the hard knocks they’ve taken to get to this point.

“Here’s what you’ve got to bank on right about now: The fact that we have four veteran players,” Gottfried said. “They get it. They understand.

“We lost four in a row last year and were a game away from putting a fork in us because we were just about cooked. But we didn’t fold the tent. Those four guys collectively need to provide that kind of leadership among our ranks. It won’t be easy (at Maryland). There aren’t any easy ones in this league.”

Especially those coming on the heels of an emotional rivalry win, with a hump still waiting to be cleared.

ACC Insider Brett Friedlander can be reached at starnewsacc@gmail.com.